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Now more confused than before....

Hi again, i started a topic a few days ago asking advice about getting a knife, after several replies and reading a lot on this and other forums....well...I am more confused tha before.

I will tell you a little bit more about myself, I cook at home, almost every day and weekends, I started culinary school but the knife will be used at home. I wont be using it several hours a day, so I can adapt to the knife id neccesary.
I own a few Wusthof Classic Ikon knives (8" chef, 4" paring and 6" sandwich) which I take care a lot. After every use, I clean them and put them away.

Now, the japanese knife I am looking for must be a good knife that will last me a lifetime but also must beautifull, I must admit that was one of the reason that I bought the whustof ikon's beside having good reviews of course.

Also I dont have skills using the stones to sharp the knives, I was thinking of getting a sharpmaker to begin.

My budget is under $200, but if it really justifies I can go a little above that.

It's easy to get confused because everybody here has his own preferences and sometimes the amount of information can be overwhelming. My take on this: these are all very good knives. The difference between your German knives and any of the ones you listed will be much bigger than the differences between the ones you listed - I hope this makes sense... You cannot go wrong with any of them. That said, my personal opinion is that the UX10 is overpriced. The Tojiro has come up in price a bit and is not quite the bargain anymore that it used to be, but still a very good all-round knife. My two preferences: The Hiromoto As with the stainless sides and the carbon core is an excellent all-round knife that is not overly challenging, you just should treat it with a bit of respect, i.e. Not let it sit dirty in the sink because the carbon layer may suffer. The Masamoto is less complicated, a very solid performer, and I always liked its blade profile. Personally, I would pick between those two but any one will make you happy with its performance.

I am not a very good sharpener and a bit lazy. But while you can go absoluely crazy with sharpening stones, many of us have started with a simple stone like a King 1000/6000 combo that is very affordable and - with a bit of practice- will give you good results.

As Murray Carter said that sharpening is 90% skill and 10 % tool, i would say the same about cheffing/cooking - 90 % skill and love versus 10% in tool. Or less even.
With time when I worked my way through different sections and produce, i noticed that the logo isnt much of importance, but sharpness, comfort and very personal preference are.
First knife i bought for serious money [as for me] was Exxent 24cm. Then I got to use Global for fair period. And this i didnt liked at all.
So when I used Kasumi, and understood why wooden handle is so important to me.
Then i had a chance to cut with Shun, and understood that 27cm is way too big for me.
Then I used some japanese knife that sous chef from Drones posessed - and was amazed by the way it ran through things. Dont remember the brand but it was heavy and felt great in use. And single bevel, yeah.
And finally I used KIWI knives, which costed exactly 2 Euros a knife. And they were seriously sharp, and if you used steel stick, they stayed sharper than the wusthof I had a chance to use.

All in all. All of the experience and your preference will come with time so for your first proper knife get something that catched your eye more than get suggested by brand.

Thanks everyone for your replies. Well as you say before, I will try to get the one that I like the most. I supposed I got lucky with the ikons and hoppe I get lucky with the jknife I choose, I will have to keep on reading the forum and get a little more confused before I get tired and choose one.

I also have a question about the sharpmaker, is it a good begginers tool??? I read very good reviews and even I really like to be sharp, I dont really need my knife to cut through steel, just a few vegetables every day.

I think if you're trying to go with spending as little as possible, than Fujiwara is the choice. Otherwise I +1 on the Hiromoto; it will give you the most bang for your buck. It will have that wicked AS edge, but a stain resistant clad. It will probably outperform all of your other stainless choices. Plus, it will last forever. (when you get into UX10 money territory, there are soooo many choices that will get you so much more for the $$$)

It's easy to get confused because everybody here has his own preferences and sometimes the amount of information can be overwhelming. My take on this: these are all very good knives. The difference between your German knives and any of the ones you listed will be much bigger than the differences between the ones you listed - I hope this makes sense... You cannot go wrong with any of them. That said, my personal opinion is that the UX10 is overpriced. The Tojiro has come up in price a bit and is not quite the bargain anymore that it used to be, but still a very good all-round knife. My two preferences: The Hiromoto As with the stainless sides and the carbon core is an excellent all-round knife that is not overly challenging, you just should treat it with a bit of respect, i.e. Not let it sit dirty in the sink because the carbon layer may suffer. The Masamoto is less complicated, a very solid performer, and I always liked its blade profile. Personally, I would pick between those two but any one will make you happy with its performance.

I am not a very good sharpener and a bit lazy. But while you can go absoluely crazy with sharpening stones, many of us have started with a simple stone like a King 1000/6000 combo that is very affordable and - with a bit of practice- will give you good results.

Just my 2cts,

Stefan

Stefan, what about this knives??? This were whr ones I looked at first but everyone told me to go with carbon/steel:

Knives are a medium in the kitchen, as cars and airplanes are a medium of transportation. If you are just planning to do some home cooking. Do not get caught up in the hype of what's out there. Go to your local knives store, try out some different sizes, styles, handles. you will automatically be transported in your kitchen with the knife you feel most comfortable with. I'm sure for what you are spending, you will not be disappointed with whatever you choose. All your selections are fine. just close your eyes and pick one.

I recall you saying that you are in Argentina and may have difficulty getting some items there. That being said, as far as a sharpening stone, I would actually recommend going with a 2000 grit stone or something like that.

I started with a 1000 stone and I still took too much steel off knives because I kept trying and trying to improve my stroke. This was in the prehistoric days when there was no such thing as the internet so I had to learn from people, what little literature was out there, and lots of elbow grease. A 6000 is nice to have, but the one thing about combo stones is that many are not full sized and too narrow. The thickness of full sized stones helps a great deal.

Looks certainly are important. No one wants to use an ugly knife on a day to day basis, unless they're really looking for something just for performance. Also, remember that better looking knives are generally more expensive. Check out the CarboNext from JCK. It's not a pretty knife at all, but has sold well because it's inexpensive, a performer and most of the people who are buying and commenting about it are cooks and chefs.

Since you happen to own and like the ikons (I've handled them and found them to be nice knives; the handle shape is ok, but the finish is very good), maybe answer these questions for yourself first before buying:

1. Do you like the weight of the ikon?
2. What is your favorite aspect of the ikon?
3. Do you like the thickness of the ikon?
4. Are you looking for something that isn't so stiff/is more flexible?
5. Do you like the handle shape of the ikon?
6. Do you like the handle material of the ikon?
7. Do you "rock chop"?
8. Do you use it to break chicken bones, fish bones?
9. What is the thing you dislike most about the ikon?

Pay attention to details. Is the spine rounded? Is the choil rounded? I don't believe they are on the ikon, but these greatly affect comfort. A pretty knife is useless if you don't like how it feels. And I agree with goodchef, try as many knives as you can.